The sale helped Oi almost triple profit from a year earlier
to 1.183 billion reais ($494 million), the company said on
Wednesday. Without the deal, Oi would have posted a net loss due
to the flagging performance of its mobile phone unit and ongoing
disconnections of fixed-line subscribers.

"We are going to continue looking to sell more assets.
Everything we consider non-core we're going to sell," Bava told
analysts on a conference call. "Any cash from asset sales will
be used to pay debts or create financial flexibility."

Oi is one of many companies in Brazil, from sugar producers
to food processors, that are streamlining operations to bolster
returns as the economy turns sour. Sliding consumer confidence
and tougher competition have weighed especially on the country's
phone companies.

"We remain cautious on Oi," wrote J.P.Morgan Securities
analysts led by Andre Baggio in a note Wednesday. By selling off
business units, Oi has sacrificed about 650 million reais of
operating profit next year, the analysts said.